LESSON 1. What Is Prayer?

Transcription

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2 LESSON 1 What Is Prayer?

3 Prayer Is Communication

4 With God When we pray, we communicate with a Person in a relational way.

5 With God Psalm prayers provide a good example of communicating with God. Desperation (Ps. 35:13; 39:12) Happiness (Ps. 86:4, 5, 10, 12) Sadness (Ps. 80:4)

6 With God Think About It As we pray we need to remember that we are communicating with God. What truths about God should we keep in mind so that we can pray personally?

7 From Our Hearts The spiritual part of us often described as the heart communicates with God, who is a Spirit (John 4:24).

8 From Our Hearts He knows our thoughts and attitudes.

9 From Our Hearts Think About It What will we think about if we pray from our hearts? How can we keep our thoughts engaged while praying?

10 From Our Hearts Think About It How can we make our language in prayer sound natural and less formal? What about filler phrases that we use in our prayers?

11 For Our Needs God promises to give us all good things (Ps. 84:11). God promises to provide for us (Matt 6:25 33).

12 For Our Needs Think About It What are some spiritual needs we have? How does God provide for those needs?

13 For His Praise Express thanks to God for His actions and character. God deserves praise because He is the greatest.

14 For His Praise Think About It Besides prayer, what are other ways we can praise God? How do we get to know what God is like so that we can praise Him?

15 Through Christ We have access to God through Christ s sacrificial death (1 Tim. 2:3 6) and by His intercession for us (1 John 2:1).

16 Through Christ Christ s work gives us confidence when we come to God.

17 According to God s Will God s will is His macro-level, omniscient plan for His glory and our good. To pray for God s will to be done requires us to have an attitude of humble submission.

18 For God s Glory To glorify God means to give Him the honor, worship, and praise He deserves. When we pray purposefully and humbly, we demonstrate that God is special to us.

19 How Can I Change? Do I really know what prayer is? Do I believe that prayer is a vital part of my relationship to God? What does my prayer life reveal about my relationship with God?

20 How Can I Change? What does my prayer life reveal about my knowledge of God? What distracts me from prayer? Do I talk naturally to God, or do I use some sort of shallow, formal language?

21 How Can I Change? Do I pray for my spiritual needs or do I only inform God of my physical wish list? Do I include thankfulness in my prayers? Do I pray purposefully for God s glory or mine?

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24 LESSON 2 Why Pray?

25 To Know God Prayer teaches me to know God through His works. The God of the Israelites and of the early church is the same powerful God I know today.

26 To Know God Prayer teaches me to know God through His wisdom. Providences are instances in which we see God working for our ultimate good, even if it doesn t seem like it. Prayer teaches me to know God s love.

27 To Know God Think About It How has God worked in answer to your prayer requests? Can you identify providences in your own life?

28 To Love God The more we know about God and experience His character demonstrated in our lives, the more we will love God (Eph. 3:14-21).

29 To Love God We pray not only because we love God, but also to love God more.

30 To Love God Paul prayed for the Ephesian believers to grow in their understanding of God s love by being grounded in God s love (Eph. 3: 14 21).

31 To Access God s Grace Prayer is a means of grace the power or help that God gives to us to obey Him, resist sin, and do His will. Prayer is hard work, and prayer is essential.

32 To Grow Spiritually Prayer is a spiritual discipline a practice to help believers to grow spiritually.

33 To Grow Spiritually How does prayer help us grow? Our dependence on God grows through prayer. Our love for others grows through prayer. Our personal holiness grows through prayer.

34 To Demonstrate and Strengthen Faith Our beliefs determine our actions. God grows and strengthens our faith.

35 To Obey God s Command God wills that believers pray (Rom. 12:12; Eph. 6:18; 1 Thess. 5:17). Failing to pray will invite the temptation to sin (Matt. 26:41).

36 Prayer will make a man cease from sin, or sin will entice a man to cease from prayer. John Bunyan

37 To Obey God s Command Think About It How can prayer be motivated by love and obedience? What does it mean to love God in prayer?

38 How Can I Change? Evaluate your motives from a biblical perspective. Are your motivations for prayer biblical? Do they reflect a heart of love? Do they demonstrate knowledge of the character of God?

39 How Can I Change? What areas of your thinking need to be changed? What practical changes do you need to make in order to change your thinking?

40 How Can I Change? Read Ephesians 3:14-21 several times. Rewrite the passage in your own words so that you could pray it for yourself. Spend time praying this prayer for yourself and for those studying the topic of prayer with you.

41 How Can I Change? Read Ephesians 3:14-21 several times. At the end of the week, spend some time thinking of the ways God has displayed His love in your life. Write them down so you can remember them and share them with others.

42 How Can I Change? Read Psalm 5. Find several characteristics of God for which you can thank Him.

43 How Can I Change? Read Psalm 5. How do those characteristics meet specific needs in your life? Write them down so you can remember what you learned about God. Spend time in prayer thanking God for His character.

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46 LESSON 3 Your Part in Prayer

47 Necessary Attitudes for Effective Prayer

48 Humility Humility demonstrates an inner quietness and submission to God. Humility recognizes that we have no strength or goodness of our own.

49 Humility is born by looking at God, and his holiness, and then looking at self and man s unholiness. E. M. Bounds

50 Humility The phrase, poor in spirit means to humbly acknowledge our great spiritual need, and rely on God to fill it (Matt. 5:3).

51 Humility Jesus contrasted humility and pride in the story of the Pharisee and the tax collector (Luke 18:9 14).

52 Humility Think About It If Jesus included you in a parable about prayer, what would He have to say about your humility or lack thereof as you pray?

53 Dependence When we recognize that we are empty of goodness and strength, and that God is our one, true Source, we won't look elsewhere for fulfillment.

54 Dependence In Hosea 7:14, the people laid around and wailed for food. God doesn t just view this behavior as human weakness He actually calls it active rebellion against Him.

55 Devotion Think About It What is devotion to God? Devotion is a commitment to the relentless pursuit of God.

56 Devotion Isaiah 40 explores the motivation behind this kind of devotion.

57 Devotion Isaiah relates God s forgiveness to the people (vv. 1 2). He reminds them of God s glory (vs. 5). As we see God s glory, we become aware of our sinfulness (vs. 5). Instead of despairing, we have confident joy in God s glorious power (vs. 9 31).

58 Devotion Resting in God gives us endurance to obey Him (vs. 31) and pray consistently.

59 Consistency God doesn t dictate a specific time of day that you should pray. We should always be in a heart attitude of prayer (1 Thess. 5:17). But it s good to pick a time to devote entirely to distraction-free prayer.

60 Sincerity Sincerity means we will do whatever is necessary to fellowship with God. Sincere prayer means earnestly persisting with God.

61 Sincerity God promises that He will hear us and reveal Himself to us if we pray sincerely (Jer. 29:12 14).

62 Conditions for Effective Prayer

63 God is limited only from the human side; and that he is always willing to give beyond our asking, if the human conditions he has so plainly laid down in his Word are fulfilled. Rosalind Goforth

64 Praying in Faith Think About It What is biblical faith?

65 Praying in Faith Faith is a confident expectation, or belief, in something that we can t see yet. Faith in Christ s sacrifice (Rom. 5:1) Faith in God s character (Heb. 10:21-23) Faith in God s promises (James 1:5 6)

66 Praying God s Will We must make sure our requests align to God s will (1 John 5:14 15). We should not base our requests on selfish desires (James 4:3).

67 Abiding in God When we stay close to God, we will start acting like Him. Unless we stay connected to God, we will spiritually wither away (John 15:1 11). Abiding in God requires obedience to God s commands and doing what pleases Him (1 John 3:22).

68 Let us see that we keep God before our eyes; that we walk in His ways and seek to please and glorify Him in everything, great and small. Depend upon it, God's work, done in God's way, will never lack God's supplies. James Hudson Taylor

69 Confessing Sin Sin breaks our fellowship with God (1 John 1:6).

70 Confessing Sin Think About It Does God hear and answer the prayers of an unsaved person? Unconfessed sin hinders prayer (Ps. 66:17 19). God promises forgiveness and cleansing (2 Chron. 7:14; James 4:8 10; 1 John 1:9).

71 How Can I Change? Take time to evaluate your attitude toward prayer. Are you humble, dependent, devoted and sincere? Review your lesson to remind yourself what those attitudes look like. Ask God to help you identify areas that need to be changed.

72 How Can I Change? What could be holding you back from communicating genuinely with God? Do you lack faith? Do you believe that God can do what you think is impossible? Read Isaiah 40:9-31 and remind yourself of God s greatness.

73 How Can I Change? Do you lack a desire to submit to God s will? Are you OK if God chooses to answer your prayer differently than you expected? Read Romans 11:33-36 and ask yourself the questions found in verses

74 How Can I Change? Do you fail to stay connected to God? Do you continually have a close, loving, personal relationship with God? Read John 15:12-17 and remind yourself about the kind of relationship that Jesus wants to have with you.

75 How Can I Change? Do you have unconfessed sin in your life? Do you have some sin that you are holding onto even though you know it s wrong? Read James 4:8-10 and humbly evaluate your life. Confess any sin so that you can experience the joy of restored fellowship with God.

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78 LESSON 4 God s Part in Prayer

79 The Trinity

80 God the Father Jesus prayed to the Father throughout His ministry (Matt. 6:9; 11:25; 26:39, 42). The Father listens to prayer, responds (John 16:23) and provides for our needs (Matt. 7:7 11; Phil. 4:19).

81 God the Father He shows mercy and grants forgiveness for sin (1 John 1:9).

82 God the Son Think About It Should we address prayers to Christ? Some prayers are addressed to Christ (Acts 7:59; Rev. 22:20).

83 Praying in Jesus Name Think About It What does it mean to pray in Jesus name? We pray in Jesus name to authorize our prayers. We are under the salvation and leadership of Jesus Christ.

84 Praying in Jesus Name Jesus instructs believers to pray in His name (John 16:23; Eph. 5:20). Praying in Jesus name also means that our prayer should be consistent with His character.

85 Prayer is to be in accordance with all that the name stands for. It is prayer proceeding from faith in Christ, prayer that gives expression to a unity with all that Christ stands for, prayer which seeks to set forward Christ himself, and the purpose of it all is the glory of God. Leon Morris

86 Jesus, Our High Priest Christ is referred to as a High Priest and intercessor (1 Tim. 2:5).

87 Jesus, Our High Priest To mediate means to make an arrangement that brings two opposite parties together. Christ reconciles sinners to the sinless God through His death (Gal. 2:20; Heb. 9:15). Christ continues to mediate for us when we confess our sin to God and request forgiveness (1 John 1:7).

88 Jesus, Our High Priest Christ prayed for all future believers in John 17 this means you!

89 God the Holy Spirit The coming of the Holy Spirit Jesus promised that the Holy Spirit would indwell all believers and live with them forever (John 14:16, 26; 15:26).

90 God the Holy Spirit The Work of the Holy Spirit God, the Holy Spirit, assists believers in many ways and does specific things for them, such as the following:

91 God the Holy Spirit Indwells believers (Acts 4:31; 1 Cor. 6:12) Opposes the flesh (Rom. 8:9; Gal. 5:16 17)

92 God the Holy Spirit Is offended at sin (Isa 63:10; Eph. 4:30) Produces fruit in believers (Gal. 5:22 24) Promotes unity among believers (Eph. 4:3)

93 God the Holy Spirit Teaches, brings to remembrance, and comforts (John 14:26; 1 Cor. 2:13) Seals believers (identifies them, gives evidence of their salvation) (Eph. 1:13) Channels the love of God into believer s hearts (Rom. 5:5)

94 God the Holy Spirit Strengthens and gives God s power to believers (Eph. 3:14 21) Assists believers in prayer (Rom. 8:26 27) Gives understanding to believers (1 Cor. 2:10 11)

95 The Holy Spirit is the breath of the life of God... The Spirit s breathing, the Son s intercession, and the Father s will become one in us. Andrew Murray

96 God the Holy Spirit The work of the Holy Spirit in Romans 8:15 17 The Holy Spirit assures our Father s love (v. 16) He encourages us in suffering (v. 18) He helps us pray God s will (vv )

97 Trinity Prayers Paul invokes the Trinity in his prayer in Ephesians 3. He petitions God the Father (vs. 14). For the Holy Spirit to strengthen the believers with power (vs. 16). So that Christ would live in their hearts through faith (vs. 17).

98 Trinity Prayers Peter prays a Trinity prayer in 1 Peter 1.

99 How Can I Change? Evaluate your prayers with these questions. Do you think about God the Trinity when you pray? What do you think about God when you pray? What changes can you make to help you think about God when you pray?

100 How Can I Change? Read through these passages and create a list of attributes of God to encourage and inspire your prayers. Matthew 7:7-11 Philippians 4:19 Romans 8:15-27

101 How Can I Change? Take time to pray these passages back to God, thanking Him for His character and asking Him to help you trust Him.

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104 LESSON 5 What Prayer Does

105 Prayer Changes God s Actions Think About It If God s will is settled, why do we make requests in prayer? Does that mean we can change God s will? Moses petitioned for the Israelites, and God showed mercy to them (Exo. 32:9 10).

106 Prayer Changes God s Actions The Ninevites repented, so God withheld destruction (Jon. 3:10). God healed King Hezekiah in answer to his prayer (2 Kings 20).

107 Prayer Changes God s Actions Prayer is one of several ways that God has created to accomplish His will, just as prayer is part of His will.

108 [My prayers] have not advised or changed God's mind that is, His over-all purpose. But that purpose will be realized in different ways according to the actions, including the prayers, of His creatures. C. S. Lewis

109 Prayer Changes God s Actions God commands us to pray (2 Chron. 7:14; 1 John 1:9), that by faith we meet His conditions.

110 God s Answers Are Conditional We must ask in faith (Luke 11:9 10; James 4:2). We must be persistent (Luke 18:1 7). Paul requested three times for a specific torment to be removed (2 Cor. 12:7 9). Instead of taking away Paul s trial, God gave him the grace to endure it.

111 Prayer Advances God s Kingdom The early church (Acts 1:14; 4:29 31), Paul (Phil. 1:3 11; Eph. 3:14 21), and Christ (Matt. 6:10) all prayed for God s Kingdom to advance.

112 What God Will Do He gives grace (Heb. 4:16). To resist sin To obey Him He provides encouragement (Ps. 55:22; Isa. 26:3).

113 What God Will Do He heals (James 4:15). He forgives sin (1 John 1:9). He sends gospel workers (Matt. 9:36 38).

114 How Prayer Affects Believers Prayer brings joy. Prayer provides fellowship with God. Prayer increases trust. Prayer realigns our focus. Prayer glorifies God.

115 Praying with Others Prayer at Church Prayer builds unity among believers, allowing us to share burdens and praise God together.

116 Praying with Others Prayer with Family Parents show their dependence on God when they pray for both large and small things. Parents can also ask their kids to pray for them, teaching them to be concerned about the needs of others.

117 How Can I Change? Do you believe that prayer works? What part of your prayer life demonstrates this belief?

118 How Can I Change? What does it look like to ask in faith? Do your requests demonstrate faith? Read Luke 22: Who prayed for Peter s faith? What can you learn about Jesus from this account?

119 How Can I Change? How do you need to rearrange the way you pray so that it feels more like joyful fellowship? Spend time praying intentionally joyful and relational prayers this week.

120 How Can I Change? Spend time thinking about the ways that God has answered your prayers. What character qualities of God do you learn from His answers? How does reviewing these answers to prayer grow your trust?

121 How Can I Change? Spend time thanking God and praising Him for answering your prayers. Record God s answers to prayers. How can you do this?

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124 LESSON 6 Christ s Instructions on Prayer

125 Wrong Motives in Prayer Impressing Others (Matt. 6:1 4) The Pharisee and the Tax Collector (Luke 18:9 14) Pride (Matt. 6:5 6) Manipulation through ritual (Matt. 6:7 8)

126 Addressing God Our Father (Matt. 6:9) God adopted us into His family (Rom. 8:15; Gal. 4:4 5). Think About It What does it mean to be adopted? A change of identity

127 Addressing God Our Father (Matt. 6:9) Access to God A relationship with God Being heirs with Christ (Rom. 8:12 17)

128 God as Our Father Think About It What should a father do for his children?

129 God as Our Father God cares for us (1 Pet. 5:7). God loves us (1 John 4:7 8). God provides for us (Phil. 4:19). God protects us (John 10:29; Ps. 91:4).

130 God s Fatherhood Gives Us Comfort (John 14:27; 15:26) Assurance (John 10:29) Confidence (Heb. 4:16)

131 God's fatherhood gives shape, value, and confidence to all our praying. E. M. Bounds

132 In Heaven (Matt. 6:9) Think About It Why do you think Jesus included the phrase, in heaven?

133 In Heaven (Matt. 6:9) By frequently using this phrase, Matthew draws attention to God s high status and superiority. God is the supreme King.

134 How Can I Change? Evaluate your heart attitudes in prayer. When you pray, do you attempt to show others how spiritual you are? Take time to repent if you need to, and remove phrases or words that you use simply to impress others.

135 How Can I Change? List the ways that God s fatherhood impacts you personally. Take time to praise Him in prayer for these truths. Write them down in a place where you can review them later.

136 How Can I Change? Research Scripture stories that emphasize God as the Supreme Ruler over all. Hint: Look at 1 Samuel 17, or look up the name, Lord of Hosts, in the Old Testament.

137 How Can I Change? What truth do you find about God in these accounts? How should that impact the way you pray? Share some of your findings with a friend, parent, or spiritual mentor. Take time to pray and praise God for being our Father in heaven.

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140 LESSON 7 Aligning the Heart in Prayer

141 Hallowing God s Name (Matt. 6:9) Think About It What does it mean to hallow something?

142 Hallowing God s Name (Matt. 6:9) This is a request of worship for God s character. For all people to recognize God s glory and worship Him for it For God to uphold His reputation and to act in accordance to His attributes

143 God s Holiness Holiness describes God s perfection and uprightness that He is separate from sin. God desires us to be more like Him in holiness (1 Pet. 1:14 16). We become holy by exposing ourselves to Him continually.

144 God s Holiness God s holiness also describes His distinctiveness. He is the only one who can answer our prayers.

145 God s Glory God works to do everything for His own glory and promotes His goodness. He deserves glory by His nature and by right of ownership. Jesus prayed many times for God to be glorified (John 12:28, 13:32, 17:1).

146 God s Glory Glory means honor, worship, praise, and recognizing God s greatness. The way we live should direct people s attention to God, not to us.

147 The sooner we learn to forget ourselves so that He may be glorified, the richer our own blessing in prayer will be. No one ever loses anything by sacrificing for the Father. Andrew Murray

148 The Coming of God s Kingdom (Matt. 6:10) God s kingdom is generally defined as the universal reign of God. God rules the hearts of believers. God rules over the physical and spiritual realms.

149 God s Present Kingdom We enter it at salvation (Matt. 18:3; Col. 1:3). We must have attitudes of repentance, humility, and faith to allow God s rule in our hearts. Entering God s kingdom brings blessing (Matt. 6:33).

150 Present Kingdom Living People must hear the gospel in order to accept salvation and enter God s kingdom (Matt. 24:14, 10:7). Living in the kingdom requires sacrifice (Luke 18:29).

151 God s Future Kingdom The present kingdom of God will exist into the future. Pictures of the kingdom Plants (Matt. 13:24 30, 13:31) Leaven, or yeast (Matt. 13:33) A traveling nobleman (Luke 19:11 27)

152 God s Future Kingdom Think About It What do these pictures have in common?

153 God s Future Kingdom Jesus taught that while the kingdom exists in believers hearts right now, it will continue to grow until it becomes supreme over all. God will also establish a literal kingdom in the future when Christ returns.

154 Praying for God s Kingdom Praying Your kingdom come is a prayer for the future, absolute reign of Christ to come quickly. It expresses a desire for the time to come when everyone will submit to Christ, and there will be peace and joy (Rom. 14:17).

155 Praying for God s Kingdom We are praying that Christ will reign in our hearts personally.

156 God s Will (Matt. 6:10) When God s kingdom has come, then His will comes to pass on Earth unhindered, just like it currently does in heaven. We also pray that God will make us submissive to Him, so He can work in us.

157 How Can I Change? Review the following Psalms and identify how God s actions are consistent with His name. Ps. 8:9 Ps. 25:11 Ps. 106:47 Ps. 91:14

158 How Can I Change? Find additional passages that reveal God s character through His actions. Spend time praying that God would hallow His name in these ways.

159 How Can I Change? Praying for God s kingdom leads us to submission to God as King. Spend time praying that you would be submissive to Christ as King and be obedient to His will.

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162 LESSON 8 Requests

163 Requests for Physical Needs God tells us to ask Him for our physical needs. But such requests shouldn t make up the majority of our prayers.

164 Our Daily Bread (Matt. 6:11) Asking God for our daily needs not just for the big things demonstrates a dependent attitude.

165 Our Daily Bread (Matt. 6:11) God gives good things even to those who reject Him (Matt. 5:45). God supplies the things we need to live for Him.

166 Our Daily Bread (Matt. 6:11) Think About It Is this true when it seems like God is not providing for our needs? What about persecuted Christians who endure homelessness, pain, and starvation around the world?

167 Asking for Desires Think About It Is it wrong to ask God for things you want? Whenever we approach God with a request, we should think about why we want our request to be answered.

168 Asking for Desires What s our motive? Selfishness? Seeking happiness or fulfillment? Trying to make life easier to avoid God s work in my heart? Or do we truly want to glorify God?

169 Asking for Desires Making requests with wrong motives James and John desired honor to glorify themselves (Matt. 20:20 28).

170 Asking for Desires The religious leaders asked for a divine sign to prove Jesus claims about Himself (Matt. 16:1 4), but they refused to believe the evidence they already had.

171 Requests for Spiritual Needs

172 Praying and sinning will never live together in the same heart. Prayer will consume sin, or sin will choke prayer. J.C. Ryle

173 Forgive Our Debts (Matt. 6:12) God s forgiveness to us is proportional to our forgiveness of others (Luke 11:2 4). A Christian cannot grow spiritually if he or she resents someone.

174 Forgive Our Debts (Matt. 6:12) We can t have a right relationship with God when there is sin in our hearts. When we don t forgive others, God does not even want us to worship Him (Matt. 5:23 24).

175 Don t Lead Us into Temptation, but Deliver Us from Evil (Matt. 6:13)

176 Deliver Us (Matt. 6:13) God is holy, and He doesn t tempt us with sin (James 1:13). However, He does test us. This phrase means that we re asking God to shepherd us away from those things that will make it easy for us to sin.

177 Deliver Us (Matt. 6:13) God allows us to go through trials in order to test our faith (James 1:2). But God promises to give us wisdom to help us (James 1: 5 6).

178 How Can I Change? Use the following questions to evaluate your motives for prayer requests. Will my desire bring glory to me, or to God? Am I asking out of selfishness?

179 How Can I Change? Am I expecting this thing to bring me happiness and fulfillment things that only God can provide? Am I just trying to make my life easier, instead of allowing God to use my situation to help me grow spiritually?

180 How Can I Change? If you discover wrong motives in your heart, spend time confessing those to the Lord. If you believe you have right motives, spend time praying again that God would grant your requests.

181 How Can I Change? Do you pray for spiritual needs as much as physical ones? List several personal spiritual needs and pray for them. List several spiritual needs for friends, family, or people in your church and pray for them.

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